Defying Hate: A Survivor's Account of the Pride Attack in Oslo

PRIO's Peace in a Pod

A year ago, in the early hours of June 25, a gunman opened fire at three locations in the centre of Oslo, including at the London Pub, a longstanding fixture of the LGBTQ+ scene in the Norwegian capital.

Espen Aleksander Evjenth was there dancing with his partner and his friends, when a bullet hit his head. Despite his severe wound, he miraculously survived.

Police later announced that they viewed the shooting as a terrorist attack, and Oslo Pride organisers cancelled the parade due to take place that same day.

Espen's story is one of courage and resilience in the face of unfathomable terror and violence. In this episode, he sits down with host Arnaud Siad to share his story.

For Norway, this was the latest in a series of attacks that have shaken a nation that traditionally sees itself as a bastion of peace and stability. From the July 22, 2011 horrific attacks in Oslo and Utøya, to more recent ones in Bærum and Kongsberg, acts of terror in Norway have led to some serious soul-searching – and a reflection on how those ultimately impact laws and society as a whole.

Kristin Bergtora Sandvik is a research professor at PRIO and a legal scholar at the University of Oslo. She is part of the LAW22JULY: RIPPLES project, a joint initiative by PRIO and the University of Oslo, that looks at the role of legal responses in rebuilding and strengthening societies after extremist attacks.

In this episode, she explains how Norwegian society is responding to terrorism.

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